4 NEWS AT 6:00. OTHER NEWS TODAY: TWO MEDICAL OFFICES IN METRO DETROIT RAIDED BY THE FEDS AND NOW MORE THAN A DOZEN PEOPLE ARE FACING CHARGES. Carmen: INVESTIGATORS SAY THEY WERE PART OF A PRESCRIPTION DRUG AND HEALTH CARE FRAUD SCHEME. IT'S A CASE THE GOVERNMENT HAS BEEN INVESTIGATING FOR MORE THAN TWO YEARS. AND TODAY, IT LED TO RAIDS AT MEDICAL OFFICES IN CLINTON AND COMMERCE TOWNSHIP. CHAUNCY GLOVER JOINS US NOW. THE FEDS SAY IT INVOLVES DOCTORS AND PHARMACISTS, ALL WORKING TO LINE THEIR OWN POCKETS AT THE EXPENSE OF PATIENTS. Chauncy: THAT'S RIGHT. WHAT WAS GOING ON IS THE DOCTORS WERE LYING, THE PATIENTS WERE LYING AND THE PHARMACISTS WERE LYING AND THE INSURANCE COMPANY PAYING FOR ALL OF THIS DID NOT KNOW THEY WERE BEING CHEATED. NOW THE DEA HAS STEPPED IN AND NOW THEY'RE CRACKING DOWN ON THE DIRTY DEALS IN THE DOCTORS' OFFICES. I HAD A PHYSICAL TODAY. Chauncy: PATIENT AFTER PATIENT TURNED AWAY BY THIS SIGN. THE OFFICE IS CLOSED. THE FEDS CAME IN TODAY AND RAIDED THE PLACE. NOW DR. DANIEL JOINS A LIST OF 12 OTHER DOCTORS AND PHARMACISTS ACCUSED OF A BEING A PART OF BOB PATEL'S SCREAM, PRESCRIPTION DRUG AND MEDICARE FRAUD. IT'S A SHOCKER BECAUSE HE'S A GREAT DOCTOR. I'VE BEEN GOING TO HIM FOR YEARS. Chauncy: HE WAS CONVICTED LAST SUMMER FOR RUNNING AN ILLEGAL PRESCRIPTION DRUG EMPIRE ACROSS THE STATE, USING HIS PHARMACIES AS A FRONT AND WOULD GIVE KICKBACK AS AND BRIBES TO OTHER DOCTORS IN ORDER TO CONVINCE THEM TO WRITE FAKE PRESCRIPTIONS FOR THOSE WITH MEDICARE, MEDICAID, AND OTHER INSURANCE. A LOT OF THE DRUGS MADE IT TO THE STREET AND WERE SOLD AND HIRED RECRUITERS TO GET OTHER PATIENTS INVOLVED. TODAY, OTHER DOCTORS IN METRO DETROIT WERE CALLED TO THE CARPET, TOO. DR. RICHARD HAD HIS CLINTON TOWNSHIP OFFICE RAIDED. DR. RUBEN BENOTI. AND DR. KARL FOWLER, ALL ACCUSED OF GIRTY DEALS. I KNOW HE ISN'T. I KNOW THAT FOR A FACT. Chauncy: THAT MAN WAS TALKING ABOUT HIS DR., DR. DANIEL THERE IN COMMERCE TOWNSHIP. A LOT OF PATIENTS COMING TO HIS DEFENSE SAYING HE IS A GREAT DOCTOR WHO ONLY GOES BY THE BOOK. THE DEA INVESTIGATORS THINK OTHERWISE. RIGHT NOW, PATEL ALSO BACK IN FEBRUARY, DR. PATEL WAS SENTENCED TO 17 YEARS IN PRISON. THOSE OTHER DOCTORS ARE SET TO GO TO TRIAL THIS JUNE. LIVE THIS EVENING, I'M CHAUNCY GLOVER. BACK TO YOU. Carmen: WHAT ARE YOU HEARING ABOUT WHEN THE OFFICES MIGHT REOPEN? Chauncy: THERE WAS A SIGN ON THE DOOR AT THE OFFICE THERE IN COMMERCE TOWNSHIP THAT SAID THE DOCTOR'S OFFICE WOULD BE BACK OPEN THIS WEDNESDAY, BUT INVESTIGATORS ARE TELLING ME THEY DON'T KNOW FOR SURE IF THAT WILL HAPPEN OR NOT BECAUSE THE INVESTIGATION IS ONGOING, SO

The U.S. Attorney's Office says the 21-count indictment alleges that Patel was the beneficial owner and controller of approximately 26 pharmacies statewide. According to the indictment, Patel would offer and provide kickbacks, bribes and other illegal benefits to physicians to induce those physicians to write prescriptions for patients with Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance, and to direct that those prescriptions be presented to one of the Patel Pharmacies for billing.

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In exchange for their kickbacks and inducements, the physicians would write prescriptions for the patients, and bill the relevant insurers for services supposedly provided to the patients, without regard to the medical necessity of those prescriptions and services. The physicians would direct the patients to fill their prescriptions at one of Patel's pharmacies. There, according to the indictment, Patel and his pharmacists would bill insurers, including Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurers, for dispensing the medications, despite the fact that the medications were medically unnecessary and, in many cases, never provided.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, patients were recruited into the scheme by patient recruiters or "marketers," who would pay kickbacks and bribes to patients in exchange for the patients' permitting Patel's pharmacies -- and the physicians associated with Patel -- to bill their insurance for medications and services that were medically unnecessary and/or never provided.

Pharmacies accused of submitting false claims

The indictment further alleges a conspiracy to distribute controlled substances at Patel's pharmacies, a purpose of which was to facilitate the submission of false and fraudulent claims to Medicare, Medicaid and private insurers in accordance with the scheme outlined above, the U.S. Attorney's Office says.

According to the indictment, Patel and his associates paid physicians associated with the scheme kickbacks and other inducements in exchange for the medical professionals writing prescriptions for controlled substances for their patients, and directing those patients to fill the prescriptions at a Patel pharmacy. The controlled substances involved included the Schedule II drug oxycodone (Oxycontin), the Schedule III drug hydrocodone (Vicodin, Lortab) the Schedule IV drug alprazolam (Xanax), and the Schedule V drug cough syrup with codeine.

According to the indictment, prescriptions for these drugs were written outside the course of legitimate medical practice. Patel and his pharmacists would then dispense the controlled drugs to patients without medical necessity. The distribution of controlled substances in this manner was intended, in part, as a kickback to the patients for agreeing to enable their insurance cards to be billed for medications purportedly dispensed at the Patel pharmacies.

Pharmacies accused of giving 'marketers' kickbacks for recruitment

The indictment also alleges that Patel and his pharmacists dispensed controlled substances outside the scope of legitimate medical practice to patient recruiters or “marketers,” as a kickback for their efforts in to recruit patients into the scheme.

In addition to his pharmacies, the indictment alleges that Patel had an ownership interest in a home health agency managed by his brother, Vinod Patel. The indictment alleges that Vinod Patel, Babubhai Patel and others bribed physicians and other referral sources for referrals to that home health agency, and then billed the Medicare program for home health services that were medically unnecessary and never provided.

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